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With the German Raw Material Efficiency Award, the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy honors outstanding examples of raw material and material-efficient products, processes or services as well as application-oriented research results.
FEDERAL MINISTRY FOR ECONOMIC AFFAIRS AND ENERGY, Germany
From 2008 to 2020, Chinese automobile production and sales have ranked first in the world. The huge production, sales, and ownership of automobiles will inevitably lead to a rapid increase of end-of-life vehicles in the future and a corresponding issue of resource recycling. Based on the analysis of a practical dismantling study and statistics declared by the supplier of 19.5% of components and parts with a weight greater than 0.5 kg from two typical vehicle models from 2011 to 2013, this paper focuses on nonmetallic components and parts, the connection of components and parts materials, and the product life cycle of each stage, to find rational technical solutions, and therefore maximize recyclability and recoverability and achieve sustainable development. On one hand, recycling at each stage for vehicles is considered in the design and development of products. As a result, it is found that the main methods, which are conducive to recycling, are increasing the use ratio of materials that are easy to recycle. In addition, general principles of material selection are summarized. On the other hand, vehicles’ dismantling is considered in the initial stage of product design and methods of structural design are summarized.
Xiaohui He; Dongmei Su; Wenchao Cai; Alexandra Pehlken; Guofang Zhang; Aimin Wang; Jinsheng Xiao. Influence of Material Selection and Product Design on Automotive Vehicle Recyclability. Sustainability 2021, 13, 3407 .
AMA StyleXiaohui He, Dongmei Su, Wenchao Cai, Alexandra Pehlken, Guofang Zhang, Aimin Wang, Jinsheng Xiao. Influence of Material Selection and Product Design on Automotive Vehicle Recyclability. Sustainability. 2021; 13 (6):3407.
Chicago/Turabian StyleXiaohui He; Dongmei Su; Wenchao Cai; Alexandra Pehlken; Guofang Zhang; Aimin Wang; Jinsheng Xiao. 2021. "Influence of Material Selection and Product Design on Automotive Vehicle Recyclability." Sustainability 13, no. 6: 3407.
Bioenergy is a building block of the ongoing transformation toward renewables-based energy systems. Bioenergy supply chains are regionally embedded and need to be seen in a place-based context with specific characteristics and constraints. Using a German case study, the potential of regionally embedded bioenergy chains in the past and the future is analyzed and discussed in this paper. The analysis integrates socio-ecological data and applies sustainability criteria in a multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) using the Preference Ranking Organization Method for Enriched Evaluation (PROMETHEE) methodology. The case study is focused on an industrial biogas fermenter in northwestern Germany, which currently uses predominantly maize as a substrate for bioenergy. Objectives for future development according to the ambitions of the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the EU Renewable Energy Directive (RED II) discussion are set and include the involvement of the farmer as biogas plant operator and other regional stakeholders. Since the focus of the research is put on the contribution of alternative biomass, such as grass, for the optimization of bioenergy settings, the question concentrates on how different mixtures of alternative biomass can be embedded into a sustainable management of both the landscape and the energy system. The main findings are threefold: (i) bioenergy supply chains that involve alternative biomass and grass from grasslands provide optimization potentials compared to the current corn-based practice, (ii) with respect to more sustainable practices, grass from grassland and alternative bioenergy supply chains are ranked higher than chains with increased shares of corn silage, and, more generic, (iii) optimization potentials relate to several spheres of the social–ecological system where the bioenergy structure is embedded. To conclude, sustainable enablers are discussed to realize optimization potentials and emphasize the integration of regional stakeholders in making use of alternative biomass and in making regional bioenergy more sustainable.
Alexandra Pehlken; Kalle Wulf; Kevin Grecksch; Thomas Klenke; Nina Tsydenova. More Sustainable Bioenergy by Making Use of Regional Alternative Biomass? Sustainability 2020, 12, 7849 .
AMA StyleAlexandra Pehlken, Kalle Wulf, Kevin Grecksch, Thomas Klenke, Nina Tsydenova. More Sustainable Bioenergy by Making Use of Regional Alternative Biomass? Sustainability. 2020; 12 (19):7849.
Chicago/Turabian StyleAlexandra Pehlken; Kalle Wulf; Kevin Grecksch; Thomas Klenke; Nina Tsydenova. 2020. "More Sustainable Bioenergy by Making Use of Regional Alternative Biomass?" Sustainability 12, no. 19: 7849.
The material basis and interdependencies of renewable energy systems have not yet been widely studied and analyzed. This book aims to bridge this gap by bringing together contributions from authors with a variety of different scientific backgrounds, who shed light on the issue from their specific discipline. In this chapter, we provide some background information about this topic, and outline the main issues that are addressed by the authors within this book: assessments of resource availability in renewable energy scenarios, the usability of methods such as life-cycle assessments, the notion of criticality and its shortcomings, the challenges related to mining the resources that are required to manufacture renewable energy technologies, the impact of political strategies, the opportunities and challenges of recycling and substitution, and the role of consumers.
Alena Bleicher; Alexandra Pehlken. The material basis of energy transitions—An introduction. The Material Basis of Energy Transitions 2020, 1 -9.
AMA StyleAlena Bleicher, Alexandra Pehlken. The material basis of energy transitions—An introduction. The Material Basis of Energy Transitions. 2020; ():1-9.
Chicago/Turabian StyleAlena Bleicher; Alexandra Pehlken. 2020. "The material basis of energy transitions—An introduction." The Material Basis of Energy Transitions , no. : 1-9.
Due to the ever-increasing consumption of resources, various materials and raw materials have become increasingly scarce and consequently expensive. At the same time, energy demand has dramatically increased in global mining operations also intensifying economic pressure. Surprisingly, the recapturing of important raw materials at the end of the product life cycle through recycling is still insufficiently implemented in the supply chain. Recycling is not only a sink for unwanted materials it can become an urban mine. This is especially relevant in Europe, where in comparison to other continents primary raw material mining of bulk materials is rather low. In a situation of scarcity, the exact planning of raw material and material flows for the following months (and sometimes years) has become ever more vital to ensure their timely and sufficient availability for production. A missing piece is the necessary transfer of production information (like bill of materials, BOM) to the recycler because information is typically kept inside the production supply chain. Digital technologies such as Digital Twins can help provide this information to the End-of-Life (EoL) stakeholders (recycling industry) as a means to increase the potential of circular economy. This paper establishes urban mining as an important concept of life cycle management in the circular economy. It uses a case study approach to explore the potential of urban mining for resource savings. The authors demonstrate that urban mining represents a high-impact application of sustainable engineering within life cycle management where Digital Twins help increase impact on sustainability.
Alexandra Pehlken; Sabine Baumann. Urban Mining: Applying Digital Twins for Sustainable Product Cascade Use. 2020 IEEE International Conference on Engineering, Technology and Innovation (ICE/ITMC) 2020, 1 -7.
AMA StyleAlexandra Pehlken, Sabine Baumann. Urban Mining: Applying Digital Twins for Sustainable Product Cascade Use. 2020 IEEE International Conference on Engineering, Technology and Innovation (ICE/ITMC). 2020; ():1-7.
Chicago/Turabian StyleAlexandra Pehlken; Sabine Baumann. 2020. "Urban Mining: Applying Digital Twins for Sustainable Product Cascade Use." 2020 IEEE International Conference on Engineering, Technology and Innovation (ICE/ITMC) , no. : 1-7.
Since the beginning of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), practitioners were discussing the standards and the interoperability of life cycle inventory databases because such databases suffer from different data formats making cross-database applications difficult. This study explores how the choice for a life cycle inventory (LCI) database influences the result of a LCA. To investigate this influence, the study also addresses the question of whether electric cars are advantageous when compared with their combustion-engine siblings. The study builds on a comparative LCA modelling of a combustion engine vs. an electric vehicle that used the ecoinvent database. This life cycle is modelled again, using the GaBi professional database and then compared against the ecoinvent-based LCA. The results provide new insights as they identify limitations due to the LCI databases applied. The advantageousness of an LCA of electric cars may depend on the LCI database used, already considering the effect of energy use in the life cycle’s use phase. This paper contributes to the limited discussion on LCA comparability across LCI databases and their application. This discussion is mainly addressed by the GLAD network so far. LCA practitioners should put additional emphasis on the reflection of LCA results and LCA stakeholders should be encouraged to further analyze and understand their results, for example, by employing alternative LCI databases. Ultimately, the LCA community and LCI data providers should aim to achieve greater interoperability of LCI data.
Matthias Kalverkamp; Eckard Helmers; Alexandra Pehlken. Impacts of life cycle inventory databases on life cycle assessments: A review by means of a drivetrain case study. Journal of Cleaner Production 2020, 269, 121329 .
AMA StyleMatthias Kalverkamp, Eckard Helmers, Alexandra Pehlken. Impacts of life cycle inventory databases on life cycle assessments: A review by means of a drivetrain case study. Journal of Cleaner Production. 2020; 269 ():121329.
Chicago/Turabian StyleMatthias Kalverkamp; Eckard Helmers; Alexandra Pehlken. 2020. "Impacts of life cycle inventory databases on life cycle assessments: A review by means of a drivetrain case study." Journal of Cleaner Production 269, no. : 121329.
Das bisher geltende Konzept der Kreislaufwirtschaft mit ihrem Fokus auf das Materialrecycling stößt immer häufiger an Grenzen, wenn konsequent alle Möglichkeiten der Produkt- und Materialweiternutzung bzw. – Verwertung berücksichtigt werden. Deshalb rückt vermehrt der Begriff der „ressourceneffizienten Kreislaufwirtschaft“ ins Blickfeld unterschiedlicher Akteure. Eine ressourceneffiziente Kreislaufwirtschaft zieht alle Möglichkeiten des „Reuse“ und „Recycling“ bei der Entscheidung über Produkt- und Materialrückführungen in Betracht. Aufbauend auf historischen Daten und Erkenntnissen aus den Marktstrukturen für Gebrauchtteile sowie für instandgesetzte Teile (Engl.: „remanufactured“) entwickelt die Forschergruppe Cascade Use ein IT-gestütztes Tool zur Entscheidungsfindung im Automobilbereich (PKW). Dadurch wird ein wichtiger Beitrag zur Wirtschaftlichkeit nachhaltiger Reuse- und Recyclingentscheidungen in der Fahrzeug-Altteilentnahme- und ggf. -Entsorgung geleistet.
Alexandra Pehlken; Matthias Kalverkamp. Entscheidungsunterstützung in einer ressourceneffizienten Kreislaufwirtschaft. Smart Cities/Smart Regions – Technische, wirtschaftliche und gesellschaftliche Innovationen 2019, 723 -736.
AMA StyleAlexandra Pehlken, Matthias Kalverkamp. Entscheidungsunterstützung in einer ressourceneffizienten Kreislaufwirtschaft. Smart Cities/Smart Regions – Technische, wirtschaftliche und gesellschaftliche Innovationen. 2019; ():723-736.
Chicago/Turabian StyleAlexandra Pehlken; Matthias Kalverkamp. 2019. "Entscheidungsunterstützung in einer ressourceneffizienten Kreislaufwirtschaft." Smart Cities/Smart Regions – Technische, wirtschaftliche und gesellschaftliche Innovationen , no. : 723-736.
Due to the high organic fraction in municipal solid waste (MSW) composition in Mexico City, anaerobic digestion (AD) is considered as a viable treatment method for organics in this study. The most feasible way refers to the waste from the wholesale market Central de Abasto, which is predominantly organics. This work aims to perform a business plan and discuss the barriers for AD technology in Mexico. In this case study, the cost-benefit analysis (CBA) approach is applied to estimate the profitability of the project. The net present value of this project is positive, and the model resulted in a payback period of 7 years. Identified barriers to feasibility of energy generation through biogas of MSW in Mexico include the need for large investment, low profitability through sales of electricity, and no use for generated heat. An attractive panorama for clean energy in Mexico was not evidenced, even though the Energy Reform took place in 2013. However, the environmental analysis also demonstrates a positive environmental impact of 730 kg CO2 per 1 Mg of MSW. Therefore, support incentives are needed to promote the use of other by-products of the AD process, such as heat and digestate.
Nina Tsydenova; Alethia Vázquez Morillas; Álvaro Martínez Hernández; Diana Rodríguez Soria; Camilo Wilches; Alexandra Pehlken. Feasibility and Barriers for Anaerobic Digestion in Mexico City. Sustainability 2019, 11, 4114 .
AMA StyleNina Tsydenova, Alethia Vázquez Morillas, Álvaro Martínez Hernández, Diana Rodríguez Soria, Camilo Wilches, Alexandra Pehlken. Feasibility and Barriers for Anaerobic Digestion in Mexico City. Sustainability. 2019; 11 (15):4114.
Chicago/Turabian StyleNina Tsydenova; Alethia Vázquez Morillas; Álvaro Martínez Hernández; Diana Rodríguez Soria; Camilo Wilches; Alexandra Pehlken. 2019. "Feasibility and Barriers for Anaerobic Digestion in Mexico City." Sustainability 11, no. 15: 4114.
The challenge of finding alternative uses for retired wind-turbine blades, which have limited disposal options, motivates this work. Two reuse concept-generation activities (CGAs) conducted in German universities revealed difficulties with the parts' large scale and seeing beyond their original use. Existing methods, e.g., using functional analogy, are less applicable, since for safety reasons, these parts should not be reused to fulfill the same function. Therefore, this work explores the use of visual similarity to support reuse-concept generation. A method was developed that (1) finds visually similar images (VSIs) for wind-turbine-blade photos and (2) derives potential-reuse concepts based on objects that are visually similar to wind-turbine blades in these images. Comparing reuse concepts generated from the two methods, VSI produced fewer smaller-than-scale concepts than CGA. While other qualities such as feasibility depend on the specific photo selected, this work provides a new framework to exploit visual similarity to find alternative uses. As demonstrated for wind-turbine blades, this method aids in generating alternative-use concepts, especially for large-scale objects.
Elisa Kwon; Alexandra Pehlken; Klaus-D. Thoben; Aimy Bazylak; L. H. Shu. Visual Similarity to Aid Alternative-Use Concept Generation for Retired Wind-Turbine Blades. Journal of Mechanical Design 2019, 141, 1 .
AMA StyleElisa Kwon, Alexandra Pehlken, Klaus-D. Thoben, Aimy Bazylak, L. H. Shu. Visual Similarity to Aid Alternative-Use Concept Generation for Retired Wind-Turbine Blades. Journal of Mechanical Design. 2019; 141 (3):1.
Chicago/Turabian StyleElisa Kwon; Alexandra Pehlken; Klaus-D. Thoben; Aimy Bazylak; L. H. Shu. 2019. "Visual Similarity to Aid Alternative-Use Concept Generation for Retired Wind-Turbine Blades." Journal of Mechanical Design 141, no. 3: 1.
Product lifecycles can contain several waste management steps after the production of a product. At each step, ‘end-of-life’ supply chains can separate, each emerging supply chain representing an intended lifecycle or an unintended, though not necessarily inferior lifecycle in terms of sustainability. This variety demonstrates the complexity arising at the end-of-life and indicates that not necessarily a single actor coordinates these supply chains. The cascade use methodology targets this complexity by identifying sustainable supply chains, possibly managed by alternative actors. This study applies the methodology to a novel case of vehicle reuse and conversion discussing its sustainability and implications for decision makers. The authors argue for more adaptive management approaches to address sustainability in product lifecycles more holistically.
Matthias Kalverkamp; Alexandra Pehlken; Thorsten Wuest; Steven B. Young. Sustainability of Cascading Product Lifecycles. Lecture Notes in Control and Information Sciences 2018, 159 -168.
AMA StyleMatthias Kalverkamp, Alexandra Pehlken, Thorsten Wuest, Steven B. Young. Sustainability of Cascading Product Lifecycles. Lecture Notes in Control and Information Sciences. 2018; ():159-168.
Chicago/Turabian StyleMatthias Kalverkamp; Alexandra Pehlken; Thorsten Wuest; Steven B. Young. 2018. "Sustainability of Cascading Product Lifecycles." Lecture Notes in Control and Information Sciences , no. : 159-168.
Material efficiency in lifecycles is a challenge that affects product innovators, producers and political stakeholders. The recycling and waste management is a direct consequence of this challenge, heavily compounded by data requirements. Especially third parties such as recyclers, remanufacturers or waste treatment sites face limited documentation and data on products. In addition, those actors face additional data management challenges due to their distinct upstream supply chains of dispersed suppliers and hence due to interrupted information flows. This study investigated various software tools to critically compare the tool's potential to improve data availability and data completeness, as well as the management of the reuse or recycling business processes using Enterprise Resource Planning software evaluation metrics for each waste-related sub-domain. The main objective of this paper is thus to provide a framework for comparison through key features, measured adherence to these features and to infer how this affects the software landscape. Software packages were sampled using public software listings and keyword filters to arrive at a final subset of publically accessible software packages, which were then critically analysed and compared by feature support. The main results of the comparison of these software packages in the discussed waste-related sub-domains revealed that data compatibility between packages and reporting requirements is the largest issue on a general level. On the level of sub-domains, the results showed that software offerings lack essential domain-specific features in order to support circular lifecycles of products and materials. Secondary results revealed a lack of database interoperability and various lesser concerns, such as incorrectly reported pricing or obsolescence information. The impact of these missing features reinforces the “silo” effect of packages, reduces the adoption rate in larger companies, and compounds the problem of smaller start-ups and companies using manual paper-based solutions and lacking reporting capabilities. Publically available databases and an increased rate of sharing of information between Original Equipment Manufacturers and recyclers would improve the decision-making through software solutions in waste-related processing.
Clayton Burger; Matthias Kalverkamp; Alexandra Pehlken. Decision making and software solutions with regard to waste management. Journal of Cleaner Production 2018, 205, 210 -225.
AMA StyleClayton Burger, Matthias Kalverkamp, Alexandra Pehlken. Decision making and software solutions with regard to waste management. Journal of Cleaner Production. 2018; 205 ():210-225.
Chicago/Turabian StyleClayton Burger; Matthias Kalverkamp; Alexandra Pehlken. 2018. "Decision making and software solutions with regard to waste management." Journal of Cleaner Production 205, no. : 210-225.
This work is motivated by finding alternative uses for retired wind-turbine blades, which have limited disposal options. Two reuse concept-generation activities (CGA) conducted in German universities revealed difficulties with the parts’ large scale and seeing beyond their original use. Existing methods, e.g., using functional analogy, are less applicable, since for safety reasons, these parts should not be reused in the same function. Therefore, this work explores the use of visual similarity to support reuse-concept generation. A method was developed that 1) finds visually similar images (VSI) for wind-turbine-blade photos; and 2) derives potential-reuse concepts based on objects that are visually similar to wind-turbine blades in these images. Comparing reuse concepts generated from the two methods, VSI produced fewer smaller-than-scale concepts than CGA. While other qualities like feasibility depend on the specific photo selected, this work provides a new framework to exploit visual similarity to find alternative uses. As demonstrated for wind-turbine blades, this method aids in generating alternative-use concepts, especially for large-scale objects.
E. Kwon; Alexandra Pehlken; Klaus-Dieter Thoben; A. Bazylak; L. H. Shu. Visual Similarity to Aid Alternative-Use Concept Generation for Retired Wind-Turbine Blades. Volume 7: 30th International Conference on Design Theory and Methodology 2018, 1 .
AMA StyleE. Kwon, Alexandra Pehlken, Klaus-Dieter Thoben, A. Bazylak, L. H. Shu. Visual Similarity to Aid Alternative-Use Concept Generation for Retired Wind-Turbine Blades. Volume 7: 30th International Conference on Design Theory and Methodology. 2018; ():1.
Chicago/Turabian StyleE. Kwon; Alexandra Pehlken; Klaus-Dieter Thoben; A. Bazylak; L. H. Shu. 2018. "Visual Similarity to Aid Alternative-Use Concept Generation for Retired Wind-Turbine Blades." Volume 7: 30th International Conference on Design Theory and Methodology , no. : 1.
China has the largest quantity of new energy vehicles (NEVs) in the world. As time progresses, a certain percentage of NEVs will enter the scrap stage every year. By examining the status quo and the problems of recycling of conventional end-of-life vehicles in China, this study investigated the potential market for end-of-life NEVs and existing problems in the recycling and reuse systems. It was found that the recycling and reuse systems’ needs should be considered ahead of time. Further, various modes and methods for the recycling and reuse of end-of-life NEVs and their parts were analysed. Several strategies for the recycling and reuse of NEVs are proposed, including the establishment of an independent industry model for the utilization of scrap NEV power batteries. This study provides a reference for establishing a sound recycling system for end-of-life NEVs and setting up a recycling and reuse platform for scrapped NEVs in China.
Weiqun Han; Yuan Shi; Alexandra Pehlken; Goufang Zhang; Pang-Chieh Sui; Jinsheng Xiao. Reuse, Recycling and Recovery of End-of-Life New Energy Vehicles in China. Cascade Use in Technologies 2018 2018, 64 -74.
AMA StyleWeiqun Han, Yuan Shi, Alexandra Pehlken, Goufang Zhang, Pang-Chieh Sui, Jinsheng Xiao. Reuse, Recycling and Recovery of End-of-Life New Energy Vehicles in China. Cascade Use in Technologies 2018. 2018; ():64-74.
Chicago/Turabian StyleWeiqun Han; Yuan Shi; Alexandra Pehlken; Goufang Zhang; Pang-Chieh Sui; Jinsheng Xiao. 2018. "Reuse, Recycling and Recovery of End-of-Life New Energy Vehicles in China." Cascade Use in Technologies 2018 , no. : 64-74.
Owners of a car usually have to maintain their car including their car parts regularly, which results in exchanging car parts from time to time. Normally, products made by original equipment manufacturers are used by professional garages because of the guarantee they have to provide. The newly developed decision tool RAUPE is based on data mining methods applied to a data base provided by a car dismantling network that includes around one million spare parts’ data. The results of this data mining is included in RAUPE giving information on the reusability chances of the spare parts and the life cycle performance related to its CO2 emissions. The decision tool is in its beta version and is to be evaluated by the end of 2018. The paper describes the concept of RAUPE and the role of its stakeholders.
Alexandra Pehlken; Björn Koch; Matthias Kalverkamp. Assessment of Reusability of Used Car Part Components with Support of Decision Tool RAUPE. Cascade Use in Technologies 2018 2018, 75 -82.
AMA StyleAlexandra Pehlken, Björn Koch, Matthias Kalverkamp. Assessment of Reusability of Used Car Part Components with Support of Decision Tool RAUPE. Cascade Use in Technologies 2018. 2018; ():75-82.
Chicago/Turabian StyleAlexandra Pehlken; Björn Koch; Matthias Kalverkamp. 2018. "Assessment of Reusability of Used Car Part Components with Support of Decision Tool RAUPE." Cascade Use in Technologies 2018 , no. : 75-82.
Because of their low emissions and possible contribution to sustainable development, both mobile and stationary fuel cells show promising tendencies to play an important role in the future. However, the polymer exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) contains significant amounts of platinum, a material considered critical within the European Union. Using material flow analysis, this paper seeks to examine how the implementation of mobile and stationary fuel cells will affect demand for critical raw materials and to what degree recycling presents a viable option for reducing the pressure on primary production. Based on a number of developed scenarios, it is demonstrated that the platinum requirements arising from a more widespread adoption of neither fuel cell vehicles nor household heating systems is likely to cause a depletion of platinum deposits in the near future. However, both technologies may increase the pressure on the already constricted platinum market.
Rikka Wittstock; Alexandra Pehlken; Fernando Peñaherrera; Michael Wark. Assessment of the Demand for Critical Raw Materials for the Implementation of Fuel Cells for Stationary and Mobile Applications. Cascade Use in Technologies 2018 2018, 111 -121.
AMA StyleRikka Wittstock, Alexandra Pehlken, Fernando Peñaherrera, Michael Wark. Assessment of the Demand for Critical Raw Materials for the Implementation of Fuel Cells for Stationary and Mobile Applications. Cascade Use in Technologies 2018. 2018; ():111-121.
Chicago/Turabian StyleRikka Wittstock; Alexandra Pehlken; Fernando Peñaherrera; Michael Wark. 2018. "Assessment of the Demand for Critical Raw Materials for the Implementation of Fuel Cells for Stationary and Mobile Applications." Cascade Use in Technologies 2018 , no. : 111-121.
This paper explores the challenges related to the End-Of-Life phase of products and circular systems of reuse and recycling within the commonly established frameworks of product lifecycles. Typically, Original Equipment Manufacturer-centric supply chain perspectives neglect the complexity at the End-Of-Life where many third-parties are involved in reuse and recycling activities. Based on a review of product lifecycle and related recycling literature, this study proposes the application of ‘cascades’, a term originally coined within the biomass domain. We propose and subsequently apply the ‘cascade use methodology’ and identify additional and value-adding End-Of-Life solutions for products and materials. The adoption of cascade utilization into product lifecycles is analyzed and critically discussed using case studies from independent remanufacturing and tire recycling, focusing on the End-Of-Life while excluding business models as renting or sharing. Although theoretically feasible, we argue that the practical adoption of ‘cascade use’ deserves more attention from researchers and practitioners in order to become an integral part of the comprehensive management of product lifecycles.
Matthias Kalverkamp; Alexandra Pehlken; Thorsten Wuest. Cascade Use and the Management of Product Lifecycles. Sustainability 2017, 9, 1540 .
AMA StyleMatthias Kalverkamp, Alexandra Pehlken, Thorsten Wuest. Cascade Use and the Management of Product Lifecycles. Sustainability. 2017; 9 (9):1540.
Chicago/Turabian StyleMatthias Kalverkamp; Alexandra Pehlken; Thorsten Wuest. 2017. "Cascade Use and the Management of Product Lifecycles." Sustainability 9, no. 9: 1540.
Alexandra Pehlken; Steven B. Young; Ming Chen. Preface. The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment 2016, 22, 1 -3.
AMA StyleAlexandra Pehlken, Steven B. Young, Ming Chen. Preface. The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment. 2016; 22 (1):1-3.
Chicago/Turabian StyleAlexandra Pehlken; Steven B. Young; Ming Chen. 2016. "Preface." The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment 22, no. 1: 1-3.
Fuel cell driven cars belong to the ‘zero emission’ vehicles and should contribute to lower CO2 emissions. However, they contain platinum, which is known as a critical material in the European Union. This study investigated the potential contribution of recycling fuel cell vehicles (FCV) to satisfy the platinum demand arising from a widespread deployment of fuel cell vehicles in Europe. Based on a qualitative examination of the four consecutive steps in the recycling chain (collection, dismantling, disassembly and pre-processing, material recovery) of fuel cell vehicles, two recycling scenarios were developed. Using dynamic material flow analysis, these two recycling scenarios were applied to two scenarios for the market penetration of fuel cell vehicles in nine European lead markets to deliver both the associated impact on platinum demand and the contribution of recycling for meeting this demand. The diffusion of FCV in Europe will not cause a depletion of platinum resources in the short term, as the calculated 537.06 t and 459.24 t in cumulative platinum requirements are far below the currently estimated global reserves. However, concerns regarding the future development of platinum supply and demand remain.
Rikka Wittstock; Alexandra Pehlken; Michael Wark. Challenges in Automotive Fuel Cells Recycling. Recycling 2016, 1, 343 -364.
AMA StyleRikka Wittstock, Alexandra Pehlken, Michael Wark. Challenges in Automotive Fuel Cells Recycling. Recycling. 2016; 1 (3):343-364.
Chicago/Turabian StyleRikka Wittstock; Alexandra Pehlken; Michael Wark. 2016. "Challenges in Automotive Fuel Cells Recycling." Recycling 1, no. 3: 343-364.
This paper explores the challenges of decisions which must be made in waste management regarding their complexity in terms of factors influencing them from different domains. These include the economic, ecological, legal and social domains. The objective of this paper is to develop improved decision-making about the treatment of end-of-life of tires (scrap tires) by taking into account a multi-dimensional perspective instead of one single focus, e.g. only environmental indicators. It is argued that such decisions are too complex to be fully understood by a single decision maker since no-one knows all the facts. The paper proposes to develop a new software tool to support a decision making process, which will lower transaction costs and find a better balance between economic and ecological drivers for decisions to be made about waste management in general and for scrap tires in particular. This paper contributes to the debate on Life Cycle Assessment and on market drivers. The focus of this paper is the cascade use of scrap tires and their conversion into new products.
Matthias Kalverkamp; Alexandra Pehlken. Support for Improved Scrap Tire Re-use and Recycling Decisions. Sustainable Transport Development, Innovation and Technology 2016, 41 -52.
AMA StyleMatthias Kalverkamp, Alexandra Pehlken. Support for Improved Scrap Tire Re-use and Recycling Decisions. Sustainable Transport Development, Innovation and Technology. 2016; ():41-52.
Chicago/Turabian StyleMatthias Kalverkamp; Alexandra Pehlken. 2016. "Support for Improved Scrap Tire Re-use and Recycling Decisions." Sustainable Transport Development, Innovation and Technology , no. : 41-52.
Alexandra Pehlken; Kirsten Madena; Christian Aden; Thomas Klenke. Forming stakeholder alliances to unlock alternative and unused biomass potentials in bioenergy regions. Journal of Cleaner Production 2016, 110, 66 -77.
AMA StyleAlexandra Pehlken, Kirsten Madena, Christian Aden, Thomas Klenke. Forming stakeholder alliances to unlock alternative and unused biomass potentials in bioenergy regions. Journal of Cleaner Production. 2016; 110 ():66-77.
Chicago/Turabian StyleAlexandra Pehlken; Kirsten Madena; Christian Aden; Thomas Klenke. 2016. "Forming stakeholder alliances to unlock alternative and unused biomass potentials in bioenergy regions." Journal of Cleaner Production 110, no. : 66-77.
Adaptable product platforms, which express a platform's modular and scalable combinations, are well suited for representing the complex mechanical composition of series products. Current adaptable platform design methods, however, still have certain limitations, such as an insufficient basis for functional modules classification, unstable classified results due to experience-based thresholds, and limited scope because of a reliance on performance mathematical models. Given the hierarchical model of adaptable platform architecture, a two-stage methodology for adaptable platform design based on quantitative indices and fuzzy arithmetic is proposed in this paper. In the first stage, the variety index and change propagation class are applied to cluster the acquired modules into standardised and flexible ones using visualised fuzzy clustering. In the second stage, common and scalable indices based on product lifecycle factors are developed in order to subdivide the components within flexible modules into common and scalable types. Trapezoidal fuzzy arithmetic is introduced in these two stages to deal with the imprecise, approximate, or qualitative linguistic assessments. The proposed approach is demonstrated using the concrete spaying machine family as an exemplary product. Sensitivity analysis showed that the results were robust for the disturbance of design variables. Comparisons with other studies’ results point to a higher stability, lower requirements for basic data, and a general effectiveness of the proposed method.
Zhongkai Li; Alexandra Pehlken; Hongtao Qian; Zhaoxi Hong. A systematic adaptable platform architecture design methodology for early product development. Journal of Engineering Design 2015, 27, 93 -117.
AMA StyleZhongkai Li, Alexandra Pehlken, Hongtao Qian, Zhaoxi Hong. A systematic adaptable platform architecture design methodology for early product development. Journal of Engineering Design. 2015; 27 (1-3):93-117.
Chicago/Turabian StyleZhongkai Li; Alexandra Pehlken; Hongtao Qian; Zhaoxi Hong. 2015. "A systematic adaptable platform architecture design methodology for early product development." Journal of Engineering Design 27, no. 1-3: 93-117.